Spider Man

After all the hype, money and bodily injury, it turns out "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark" is kind of lame. ( Los Angeles Times ) Ladies and gentlemen, here's your Oscars class of 2011. ( Los Angeles Times ) Sunday's Super Bowl was the most-watched TV event in U.S. history. ( Los Angeles Times ) Some dinner guests bring a bottle of wine; according to Josh Brolin, John Travolta brings his magical Scientology healing ability. ( Wall Street Journal ) Prince pulls Kim Kardashian on stage during his Madison Square Garden show, realizes she has no talent, boots her off the stage.

The 'Spider-Man' sequel doesn't swing into North American theaters until next weekend, but the superhero flick is already sticking with moviegoers overseas. Since launching in a handful of international markets this month, "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" had collected an impressive $132 million, according to an estimate from distributor Sony Pictures. The movie is currently playing in roughly 40 foreign markets, performing best in the Britain, Mexico and South Korea. The picture has yet to open in an additional 30 countries abroad, including major markets like Brazil and China.

Webb to weave Spidey Marc Webb has caught the job of "Spider-Man" director. Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios announced Tuesday that the "(500) Days of Summer" director will helm the next "Spider-Man" film following the departure of Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire, the director and star who worked on the previous three Spidey films. The fourth installment is set for a 2012 release and will focus on a younger version of the superhero. Webb said in a statement he was not taking over the series from Raimi but instead wanted the "opportunity for ideas, stories and histories that will add a new dimension, canvas and creative voice to 'Spider-Man.

NEW YORK -- “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” is one of the splashiest of the many action-adventures to debut this moviegoing season, so it's fitting that it had a premiere to match. On Thursday night outside this city's landmark Ziegfeld Theater, fans with balloons, Spidey suits and other accouterments lined the street, where stars from the film including Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone and Jamie Foxx all walked a red carpet. Inside the theater, director Marc Webb, looking surprisingly fresh given the globe-trotting tour that has taken him and the cast across Asia and Europe in the last few weeks, shouted out to the New York locations and brought the cast to the front of the theater.

Like a superhero after a bad beat-down, the Broadway musical starring Spider-Man has dusted itself off and is fighting back against perhaps its greatest nemesis ? its own complications. After the first preview performance Sunday, in which "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark" had to be halted five times because of technical glitches, two subsequent shows have each been stopped only once. "We've worked out 80% of our bugs," says lead producer Michael Cohl. "We're way ahead of the game.

Bad luck has struck the Broadway musical "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark" again: Another cast member has been hurt in a production that has been plagued by injuries. This time, lightning has struck twice in the same role. Rick Miramontez, the show's spokesman, confirmed Tuesday that T.V. Carpio, who plays Spidey's nemesis Arachne, was hurt March 16 "during an onstage battle scene with a fellow actor. " She is expected to sit out the next two weeks on doctor's orders, with America Olivo taking her place.

For proof of income inequality in America, look no further than the take-home pay of Batman and Spider-Man . Bruce Wayne is a 1 percenter, with an estimated annual income of $102 million. And that excludes the potential extra riches to be had from stock options. Spider-Man, by contrast, can't afford a Batmobile. He's clinging to a modest $50,000-a-year salary - barely enough to cover his tuition at New York University. The figures come courtesy of a blogger at H&R Block and appear to have as much - or as little - basis in reality as the comic strips themselves.

The warring parties in the "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark" lawsuits -- one-time director Julie Taymor and the show's producers -- have reached what appears to be a tentative settlement. Judge Katherine B. Forrest issued an order Thursday reporting that the two parties have reached an agreement in principle, according to a court spokeswoman. The spokeswoman said she could not elaborate on the order. An official spokesman for "Spider-Man" said there was no comment on the matter.

Director Julie Taymor has reached a settlement in her epic legal battle with the producers of the Broadway musical "Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark. " In a joint statement released Wednesday, the two sides said that the pending litigation between them has been settled by "mutual agreement of all parties. " No terms of the settlement were announced. However, the statement said that Taymor's claims against the musical have been resolved "with respect to both the current New York production and subsequent productions.

On the heels of a winter storm that dumped several inches of snow in the New York area and pushed temperatures into the single digits, "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark" is looking to have a relatively subdued farewell when it officially closes at the Foxwoods Theatre on Saturday. "Spider-Man" will shut its doors following Saturday evening's performance, bringing to an end a troubled Broadway saga that saw cast injuries, the firing of director Julie Taymor and a rumored $75 million budget that would be the highest in Broadway history.

Emma Stone has a new 'do to go along with her new film. "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" star debuted a bob-like haircut and blunt bangs for the film's world premiere Thursday night at New York's Ziegfeld Theater, where she was the picture of elegance in a a cream-colored cut-out gown by Prada. The Italian fashion house also supplied her with the shoes and clutch, and she wore Sidney Garber jewelry, according to Just Jared . The 25-year-old slipped into a shorter Victoria Beckham frock for the premiere's after-party at Skylight at Moynihan Station.

The nurses on the 20th floor were the first to see them. "Oh my goodness," declared Colleen Forrester, 29, a nurse dressed in green scrubs, who pointed to the windows. Other nurses came to look and laughed. Were the children strong enough to come see? Soon, parents and nurses were leading kids out of their rooms. The children were small and frail-looking. Most were undergoing treatment for cancer and other serious disorders. But on this cold April morning, they had a precious moment of distraction.

Care to supersize that ticket? Regal Entertainment is banking on it. The nation's largest theater chain is selling a "SuperTicket" for Sony's "The Amazing Spider-Man 2," which debuts in U.S. and Canadian theaters May 2. The cost is $20 above the regular movie ticket price and includes a high-definition digital copy of the film before it is released on DVD, as well as a digital copy of "The Amazing Spider-Man" on the streaming service Vudu....

Emma Stone wore a stunning marigold yellow gown from Atelier Versace to the London premiere of "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" on Thursday. But her elegant garb didn't prevent her from getting down and snapping a crowd selfie. [People] Thigh-gap controversy alert: A photo on Beyonce's Instagram showing the star golfing in a bathing suit is drawing allegations from commenters that her thighs were digitally altered to look thinner. [Racked] Model Elle MacPherson, launching a new lingerie line called the Body for JC Penney, recommends that women have no fewer than seven sets of lingerie -- and tells the Cut blog that she herself has 50 and that she keeps it all color-coded.

"The Amazing Spider-Man 2" doesn't swing into U.S. theaters until May 2, but early reviews have begun trickling out as the superhero sequel readies its international rollout. So far, most film critics agree that director Marc Webb's second installment is somewhat overstuffed but benefits greatly from the sparks that fly between Andrew Garfield (Spider-Man/Peter Parker) and Emma Stone (Gwen Stacy). Variety's Guy Lodge says that although "Amazing Spider-Man 2" feels redundant, coming just five years after Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man 3," the movie "acrobatically spins enough sound and fury to distract from the issue, while the tinderbox chemistry between leads Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone delights once more.

There's no hiding the intent behind "It's on Again," the new Alicia Keys single boasting guest spots from Kendrick Lamar and Pharrell Williams. In the song's opening moments, Lamar is heard shouting that this song "is for the warrior"; soon after, Keys arrives to coo that she's "a freedom fighter" and an "eye of the tiger for hope. " For most of its four minutes, "It's on Again" makes it clear that this is a tune designed for a superhero movie. With the start of baseball season this week, don't be surprised to hear this upbeat soulful pop song at more than a few parks over the summer. PHOTOS: Unexpected musical collborations Recorded for "The Amazing Spider-Man 2," the single also features an assist from soundtrack workhorse Hans Zimmer, who tapped Williams and former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr to work on the score.

On paper, at least, "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark" had the makings of a sure-fire Broadway hit. It boasted a rock score by U2's Bono and the Edge. It had Julie Taymor, the visionary director of Disney's "The Lion King. " Above all, it starred one of Marvel's most enduringly popular superheroes, one who needed no introduction and who came with a built-in fan base. Several years and mountains of legal documents later, "Spider-Man" has become a cautionary tale of Broadway excess and artistic hubris.

After all the debate, the questions and the cage-rattling about whether Marc Webb's "The Amazing Spider-Man" was a good idea, audiences this holiday weekend spoke. People (a lot of people, $140 million worth of people) bought tickets to "The Amazing Spider-Man. " And the great majority of them enjoyed it. Like, A- CinemaScore enjoyed it. None of that will be enough to move most skeptics from their position that the Sony movie should never have been made in the first place.

There's plenty of Harry Osborn/Green Goblin and not quite as much Electro in this new, and final, trailer for Marc Webb's “Amazing Spider-Man 2.” But the villain count is beside the point. The cast and filmmakers are about to embark on a major continent-hopping trip, and the film opens internationally in just a month, on April 18, so we'll see pretty soon what happens on the big screen to Andrew Garfield's Peter Parker and Emma Stone's Gwen Stacy (or at least hear about it from overseas reviewers)

Theater is a superstitious profession, especially when it comes to failure. On Broadway, the Foxwoods Theatre, which served as home for the troubled musical "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark," will officially be renamed the Lyric for its next tenant -- a revival of the musical "On the Town. " As one of Broadway's biggest houses, the 1,900-seat Foxwoods has undergone a number of name changes since the venue opened on 42nd Street in New York in 1998. It was first called the Ford Center for the Performing Arts and was later rechristened the Hilton Theatre in 2005.